Saved by Potter
by Anambar d'Sang
Summary: Ch.3 up! Marcus Flint, after being granted amnesty by the Minister is released from jail into the custody of Harry Potter who must protect him from what remains of Voldy's followers.
1. Chapter 1

_**Hello everyone! I used to write under the name Goliath Family Witch but I lost the password to that account and it won't send it to me...**_

_**So, I'm back and noticed that there are not enough stories involving Harry and a minor character like Marcus Flint. So this is my bundle of wood for the bonfire. I love reading reviews, it inspires me to write more. So please, find it in your heart to review me. Praise and tips are welcomed, flames are laughed at my friends. Happy reading!**_

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing, except maybe some minor OC's in future chapters. The plot is mine. The other characters and most locations belong to J.K. Rowling.**_

**Saved by Potter**

_Cold..._

The halls of the now completely inescapable Azkaban were the most depressing place Harry Potter had ever set foot in. He shrugged off a feeling of lifelessness and shuddered at the freezing temperatures. What was the Ministry thinking? That they could kill off the inmates with frostbite? The use of Dementors had ceased after the last battle due to their allegiance to You-Know-Who, so spells to mimic their behavior were implemented.

The Boy-Who-Lived walked down corridor after corridor until coming to a halt in front of two gargoyles.

_Password?_

"Amnesty"

The walls split, leaving a rather large hole in between the snarling statues. Complete darkness lined the ancient walls.

Lifting his wand, Harry uttered, "_Lumos,_" and the glow chased the shadows off, giving him a good look at the nearest cell. The glaring face of Bellatrix Lestrange greeted him. She was in a holding cell awaiting the kiss. But glaring was all she could do, as she couldn't really think of anything witty to say to the man who killed her lord.

He moved on, recognizing a few people every now and then until he came to the cell of Dolores Umbridge. She sneered at him from behind the rusty bars in the tiny space, wanting nothing more then to lash out at him. He scoffed at her and moved on; she had every reason to be in here. After his victorious duel with Lord Voldemort, the Ministry, now led by Kingsley, rounded up all the Death Eaters they could find in the Wizarding World and tried them in front of the Wizengamot. Dolores was caught and convicted for denying the right of status and magic to muggle born wizards and witches and imprisoning them by claiming that they had stolen their wands from purebloods. Her sentence had been for 5 years. She had a long time left.

He rounded a corner and came to a door. He opened it and looked around. This was where the man he was here for was held.

He focused his attention to a groan from the other side of the room.

_'I hope he's capable of speaking.'_

Harry shut the cold iron door behind him and crossed the space to the dark shape in the corner.

"Flint?" Harry's voice was soft, not wanting to startle the mess of bones at his feet. Receiving no answer from the older boy, he leaned closer.

"Marcus?" he tried again. This time, Marcus raised his head to stare up at his visitor.

"Come to taunt me too Potter?"

Harry got a good look at his eyes. He had never in his life seen so much misery and pain in anyone before.

"Actually, the Wizengamot found you innocent a few days ago. Your case was reopened by yours truly after interrogating a few people and getting them to testify. You should thank the Malfoys for their testimonies."

"So why are you here?" inquired the pale figure, curiosity and joy overcoming the other, darker emotions in his eyes.

Harry smiled, "I think you know," He stood up and offered the boy his hand.

Marcus stared at it for a moment then latched on to it as if it were his life line and Harry was more then happy to pull the innocent boy up from the dirty floor. Together they made their way to the door and past the envious taunting of the other inmates to the statues of the gargoyles, who sealed the entrance once they were out.

Finally, he was free, free from frequent starvation. Free from loneliness. But he was not completely happy; where would he go? He no longer had his wand or the key to his vault in Gringotts. As if on cue, Harry began, "The minister would like to return your wand and possessions tomorrow. You can stay with me, Flint, until you're ready to continue with life from where you left off."

Marcus offered him a small smile and the darkness of the prison gave way to the blue sky. Harry grabbed him and they disapparated to Godric's Hollow, feeling the all too familiar sensation of compression. There they would await the meeting with Kingsley Shacklebolt, Minister of Magic, tomorrow evening.

_**There ya go H/M fans, more to come in the future. Reviews, reviews...must have reviews. **_


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hello, and welcome back to another installment of Saved by Potter! Happy reading!**

**Disclaimer: You'd know if I owned HP. Anything you recognize is not mine.**

**Chapter 2**

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The next day was going along rather slowly. The two men had arrived late into the night and were still a bit tired. Marcus found himself awake in a strange room decorated in standard Gryffindor red and gold, and there was actually a bed underneath him. He was brought out of his thoughts by a house elf popping in.

"Good morning. Master Harry has asked me to give you this letter when you woke up." The house elf, dressed in simple rags with a oval necklace sporting the letter S on it, handed the piece of parchment to his master's guest. Marcus took the note and looked it over.

_'Marcus,_

_Kreacher will show you to the bathroom so you can take a shower. No offense but you stink._

_I went out and bought some clothes while you were asleep. Kreacher will bring them to you._

_I had to go out and take care of some business and should be back around breakfast time._

_-Harry'_

He reread the note several times before bringing his attention to the cough by the door. Kreacher, it seemed, was waiting for him to follow. Pushing the covers off of him he jumped when he noticed that he was clad only in a pair of boxers. Maybe Potter had undressed him and put them on. The former convict flushed a deep crimson at the thought of being seen naked by someone, let alone the fucking Boy Who Lived. Suddenly he noticed that Kreacher was still waiting, now impatiently, by the door. Not wanting to face the wrath of an angry house elf, he followed him out of the room and down a hall, down a flight of stairs and another hall before stopping in front of a door.

"Here is the bathroom sir, I shall go bring your clothes." And with a pop, he was gone, leaving Marcus standing stupidly at the door before realizing that he should probably open it. The bathroom was large but not too big. Marble tiles decorated the walls and in the far corner was big round bathtub that looked to be made of the same stuff. The entire east wall was a mirror that faced the stone tub. Marcus inwardly smiled at how vain Potter must be. He made his way to the tub and turned the faucet on, waiting for it to fill up. Some time during his wait, Kreacher came back with a pile of neatly folded clothes and once again left the boy to get rid of his filth. Dumping half a bottle of bubble bath in when it was ready, he sunk in to the luxury he had not been allowed for a year.

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Harry came back that morning at around nine. He left early in the morning to go visit his old house. The same house where his parents died but he survived. The same house where Voldemort created a Horcrux inside of him. He often came there to just stare at the ruined house and read the many hopeful and encouraging messages left on the bewitched wooden sign outside. It once served as much needed fuel in his struggle with Lord Voldemort.. Now it was just a shadow of the past, a memorial to those who lost someone in the fighting or were themselves lost. Now he entered the house that was built nearby. It was a mansion, you could say, but it wasn't the grandest piece of architecture you'd ever see as Harry didn't want to overdo it because he lived alone with Kreacher. When he entered the dining room, the smells of coffee, pancakes, and toast greeted his nose and his mouth instantly began to drool. The area was empty so he called for Kreacher.

"Does master Harry require anything?" inquired the house elf when he appeared.

"Is breakfast ready? Where's our guest?" Harry barely finished the sentence before the subject of his inquiries walked through the door, squeaky clean and not a speck of dirt anywhere. He was wearing a plain navy blue jumper and pair of jeans that looked suspiciously tight. To say that Harry Potter was gaping like a fish out of water was an understatement. The other man seemed to have noticed him staring and smiled.

"Close your mouth Potter, you'll catch flies."

Harry quickly complied, a very noticeable blush spreading across his cheeks. Without another word, the two sat down at the table and ate their meals in awkward silence. When they finally finished, Marcus asked for a tour of the house he'd be living in for a while and Harry, being the awesome host, gladly met his request. They started off on the first floor. It had three bedrooms, a bathroom, the kitchen, dining room, living room, and a sun room for those lazy days when all you want to do is sit back and take a nap. Next they went up to the second floor. This one had four big bedrooms and a bathroom. The third floor had another two big bedrooms, one of which was currently Marcus's. Kreacher had done a good job keeping all of the rooms clean if for some reason they had guests who would be staying over. When they got back to the living room, the fireplace abruptly came to life, spitting out an envelope with the Ministry of Magic seal on it. It didn't wait for someone to open it. Instead, the envelope burned up in a burst of magical green fire and the letter folded itself into a pair of lips.

"Good morning," it began, "This is a confirmation letter from the Ministry of Magic's Evidence Storage Department. We have received word that a withdrawal of Marcus E. Flint's storage box ID: 55269 is to take place this evening of November 20, 2009 at 6:00 PM. If this is correct, please point your wand towards this letter and say_ ita vero_ and if not please say_ minime vero." _Then the pair of lips fell silent, waiting for an answer. Harry took out his wand and raised it at the paper messenger and said "_ita vero_".

The lips spoke again. "Thank you for your confirmation, we look forward to seeing you tonight." and then it was gone.

"So I'll be getting all of my possessions back tonight." asked Marcus.

"I believe so, the Minister himself arranged it." was the reply.

"I still can't believe I'm free of that horrid place...Why did you of all people stand up for me? I thought those stuck up old fools in the Wizengamot had their minds made up?"

Harry thought the question over. Why _had_ he decided to take up his case? He turn to face Marcus, who wanted very much to know why the Boy-Who-Lived-And-Killed-Voldemort would care to argue the case of a suspected Death Eater.

"Well," Harry started, recounting the major events of the day when he decided to take up the cause.

---Flashback---

It had been a year after Marcus Flint was convicted of being a Death-Eater and Harry Potter, Head of Magical Law Enforcement was siting back in his comfortable chair listening to the Veritaserum induced speech from Livrell Sullivan, a known Death-Eater in Voldemort's top circle of trust. Of course Harry tried to listen but sometimes his thoughts roamed off to parts unknown.

"...he had forged evidence against some families that were not totally under his thumb in case they tried to betray him and he couldn't kill them."

For some reason that got his attention.

"Excuse me, but do you know which families Voldemort planed to frame?" he asked, ignoring the glare from the man seated across from him for not showing his lord proper respect.

The man spat out the names like they were poison, "McEvrey, Sanderson, recently Maldorin and Malfoy, Aunders, Thyme, and Flint."

No one from that list was to be questioned this week. What was strange was that the Flint family was mentioned, and Marcus was the only one left in the country. He did have a brother in Croatia but they were certain that he had no ties with the Dark Lord. Harry was, as his job required, in attendance at the trial of Marcus. This new piece of information got him thinking. What if they had sent an innocent man to prison. He knew from Sirius that it was not an easy thing to go through. Wrapping up the interrogation an hour later, he sent the recorded conversation to the Storage Department and went to the Minister.

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The Minister of Magic leaned forward at what the Head Interrogator and Auror was proposing. When he was done recounting his findings, Kingsley sighed.

"Oh Mr. Potter, I wish I could approve but I can't. The are much more important investigations to acknowledge then some faulty sentencing."

"But Minister, are you really all that willing to let a possibly innocent man sit in a filthy prison cell tormented by those bloody Dementor spells?"

Noticing that the older man was about to say no once again, Harry hastily continued, "Give me a week. That's all I'm asking for. If I am wrong you can dock my pay for that whole week."

The Minister seemed to considered it for a minute before speaking, "Fine Harry, you have a week."

He was elated and ran for the door before pausing to turn back and thank the amused Minister of Magic and went to work. He looked at his watch. A quarter past 5. Enough time to go through a few interrogation records.

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Kingsley Shacklebolt looked approvingly at the young man before him. He had done what he had said he would do and he did it in less then a week. He had found some very good evidence that Marcus Flint was not the murderer that he was convicted of being. The wrongly accused was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"All in favor of release?"

Most of the assembled members raised their hands. Harry was happy, both for his paycheck and for his charge.

"This assembly of the Wizengamot finds the defendant Marcus E. Flint to be not guilty on thirteen counts of murder by the killing curse and therefore released from Azkaban Detention Facility into the custody of Harry J. Potter. "

Harry released the breath he didn't realize that he was holding. It went well, just as he'd thought it would...didn't he? Alright, so might have doubted himself a bit but who wouldn't. But the case was ruled in his favor and that's all that mattered.

After the trial, the minister stopped him outside the courtroom. He handed him a piece of parchment.

"Here's my magical signature for when you go to his cell. It will open for you."

Harry smiled at his old friend and thanked him. Kingsley gave him a congratulatory pat on the back and was on his way, leaving Harry to go fetch his charge.

---End Flashback---

When he was finished speaking, he looked once more at Marcus. His expression was hard to read. There was gratitude but it was arguing with his Slytherin pride. But who could blame him, it's just his nature. But Harry was confident that he could get him to open up some more. He had to try if they were going to be living together.

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At noon, Harry decided that they should go to Diagon Alley to pickup his order from the Pet Emporium and to just look around for a bit so Marcus could see if anything had changed.

When their plan was decided, Marcus took Harry's hand in his, ignoring the silent flush from the other. They turned and found themselves right in front of Flourish and Blotts where people were walking in to see the newest selection of books on any subject you could imagine, and out with bags in their arms.

Of course the news of Flint's release reached the Daily Prophet and all the other, minor papers. They did get a few stares and an even fewer glares but they didn't really care. Not like there was anything to gain by minding what other people thought.

The two shopped for a while before settling into lunch at Madam Goodwall's newly opened restaurant. The food wasn't bad. You could go as far as to say that it was good. After they ate, they shopped some more and sometimes made small talk with people who they scarcely knew.

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A few hours later it was five pm and Harry's order was sure to have arrived. So they headed for the Pet Emporium. When the clerk caught sight of Harry, he ran over to greet him and his friend.

"Ah, Mr. Potter! Welcome back. How are you two?" he asked shaking each man's hand. After the pleasantries were over he continued,

"Your new Eurasian Eagle Owl has arrived an hour ago."he said, leading them to the back of the room where the new arrivals and special orders resided. The owl itself was a huge thing, perhaps even bigger then Malfoy's. The bird was almost completely dark brown but with a few grayish spots here and there.

Harry looked at his new messenger owl and a shadow passed across his face. It was no Hedwig but you can't really dwell on the past, it's much better to think of the future.

"Is it male or female?"

The clerk turned to him, "Female, I hope that's not a problem."

"Of course not. How much do I owe you..." he asked before overhearing some words between two men who looked like they were trying to wrestle a large yellow python out of a cage. "Can't we just kill it_ now_? I really don't want to handle this thing while it's alive." One of the men said.

"Excuse me but what are they doing?" he asked the clerk.

"What?" replied the man, before looking to where Harry was pointing.

"Oh that is one of our Albino Burmese Pythons. Usually the snakes we stock are sold in a matter of months without any problems. That one there seems to have temper problems. Shame, really, for now we have to kill it."

"Can I buy it?" Harry asked, pitying the creature. He didn't like it when animals had to be killed because of their nature.

The clerk looked puzzled before saying, "Why would you want to. I don't think it's wise to keep a giant constrictor with a bird. But then again, more business for me. I'll sell it to you for 50 galleons, and the owl for 30 galleons and 10 sickles."

Harry agreed to the price and the man rushed over to the handlers and spoke briefly to them. They put the snake back into it's cage.

"A snake? How very Slytherin of you." Marcus teased, a grin on his mouth.

"Yeah, well, the sorting hat was going to put me into Slytherin anyway."

"I know. I was there." He reminded Harry.

The clerk came back, levitating the cage behind him. "Shall we ring these two up?" He asked before casting another levitating charm, this one on the owl's cage.

They walked to the front register and Harry paid the man his due and with a "Goodbye," they left. Harry glanced at his watch. It was 5:30, he informed Marcus, trying to catch up with him. "Hold on," he said, "Kreacher!" The house elf appeared under the canopy of a nearby shop and Harry gave him the cages with specific instructions to keep the snake in the sun room and the bird in the second room on the third floor. The elf nodded and disappeared.

Marcus waited for the younger man to reach him before they continued onwards to the Leaky cauldron where they flood to the Ministry of Magic.

When they emerged from the fireplace covered in soot, which a little cleaning charm fixed, they found themselves surrounded by many other people with more jumping out of fireplaces by the minute. "I forgot how crowded this place can get," remarked Marcus with a glance around. Sometime later found them walking down the hall to the Department of Storage of Evidence. By the door was Kingsley, glancing at his watch every few seconds.

"Minister!" Harry called, closing in.

"Harry, Marcus. You're right on time, let's go in, shall we?" And with that, the three walked through the door and into a giant warehouse.

"May I help you?" Came the voice of a witch at the reception desk.

"Yes," the Minister answered, "We're here for box number: 55269."

"Follow me please," the witch said, leading them through a maze of shelves upon shelves of boxes.

"He we are," They stopped by a shelf with a box labeled 55269. It was made of wood and the size of Harry's school trunk. She took out a key and unlocked. Lifting the lid, she said "It's all yours at this point. If you'll excuse me." And she left.

Inside the box were papers and glass cubes that Harry recognized as voice records. But Marcus was more interested in the wand tucked away at the side. He lifted it and a few sparks flew from the tip.

"Walnut, 13'', Kelpie hair core." He muttered, admiring the wood like a long lost friend.

The minister chuckled, "Well, Mr. Flint. On behalf of the Ministry of Magic, I would like to transfer 200,000 galleons to your Gringotts account as compensation for our mistakes. I would also like to offer you my apologies."

"Thank you Minister." He turned to Harry, "I guess this means I won't be living with you for long." A hint of sadness in his voice. Harry glanced at the Minister who began, "Marcus, I've been meaning to talk to you about that," pausing only to think through his wording, "There are...those followers of the Dark Lord who have been able to elude capture. They do not take kindly to, and I quote, "Blood traitors who are responsible for our Lord's fall.""

"So," this time Harry spoke, bringing Marcus' attention to him, "You're under my protection. At least until we recapture these rouges and make sure it's safe for you to be on your own."

"But what would anyone have against me? I didn't help kill You-Know-Who!" Marcus argued.

"Did you fight for him?" Asked the Minister.

"No!" Was the heated reply.

"There's why." Harry cut in, "Because they think that if some of the Death Eaters had put in more effort, he would still be alive. Those who are not in Azkaban are either dead, with them, or under the Ministry's protection."

Marcus looked a bit depressed and he spoke quietly, "Will I be able to go out much."

"Of course Mr. Flint, but Harry will always have to accompany you."

"I _guess_ it doesn't sound that bad." He answered and flashed Harry a heart melting trademark smile. He was going to enjoy being so close to Harry, knowing what fun he would have because of his effects on the auror.

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They left the ministry some time later and headed for home, totally unaware of the silent observer in the shadows.

They would pay, all of them. How dare the filthy traitors not give their heart and mind to the Dark Lord?

For now, he would report his data and go back home. Their time will soon come.

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_**Ita vero – Certainly yes, of course yes**_

_**Minime vero – Certainly not, of course not **_

**This chapter is dedicated to two people:**

**Pain au Chocolat**

**and**

**Anna**

**Thank you guys for you're awesome reviews. It really inspired me to write. Hope you liked the chapter and the story so far.**

**Read and review guys.**


	3. AN

Author's Note

I am so sorry for the lack of updates. Highschool got in the way. But worry not boys and girls, I will be back SOON. Chapter three will take some more brainstorming. I'll start writing it when I finish my Phys. Science poster and my short story for English.

Once again, I am so sorry for not updating. I hope you can forgive this lowly servant or yours.

À bientôt!

-Sarr


	4. Chapter 3

Bonjour. I feel really bad about being on hiatus for months but I guess I can't really excuse that. So I won't try! :D Instead, here's chapter 3! _P.S. I'm ignoring some things from Book 7. Mainly, the ending and who dies as you'll probably notice in my story. Some characters were too golden to be left dead._

The two wizards returned home on foot from their meeting with the Minister of Magic. There was hardly any conversation. They were each lost in their respective thoughts. Marcus was trying to sort through his thoughts and Harry was reluctant to break the silence that had been looming over them since they had set out for home. Consequently, neither of the two noticed the recent change in the wards that offered security to the Potter house until they were already well past the fence of Harry's property. Harry stopped in his tracks at the doorstep and his face reflected the nervousness that they were both feeling.

"It's as if they were torn apart." Harry said cautiously and quietly, referring to the myriad of barriers and incantations placed on the residence.

Marcus understood the hint and kept his voice low. If there was someone inside, they might be very well aware of their return. The needed to be agile and cautious for if someone walked through Harry's wards then they must be quite strong. Harry turned to Marcus and motioned him to follow. When they stepped through the door, they looked around and found that no one was there. But it was while searching the second floor that they heard struggling coming from Harry's room on the third floor. It was faint and at first neither noticed it. But it was persistent and eventually it got their attention. The two exchanged glances and scurried up the stairs. The door to the second room to the left was ajar and looked like it had been violently swung aside for there was a huge, noticeable crack running through it. Harry didn't pay much attention to it because his eyes were trained on the cloaked figure lying on the floor, being squeezed to death by the python. Kreacher was standing next to the intruder, his gaze on Harry.

"Seems we have a guest." The house elf told his master prompting Harry to momentarily divert his attention to his faithful house elf.

Harry looked back at their intruder. He seemed to be unconscious. But as he got closer, he found that he was merely unable to move. The mask that hid his face was promptly torn off by Harry, who wanted answers. This person was quite obviously a threat to his being as well as his peace of mind if he was able to sidestep the wards. The Boy-Who-Lived had caked his residence in protective charms that hailed from various countries and from dozens of languages. It had taken hours of intricate spell weaving to make sure that the different shields did not conflict with each other. When he was done, he had perhaps the most secure home in the United Kingdom. The head ache he got from such an experience was a sort of badge of honor. He didn't complain that his head was in agony for days knowing that it was all worth it. And it was. The legions of reporters after him could not even locate his exact whereabouts courtesy of the strong charms that made the Potter Residence unnoticeable. Well, it _would_ be noticeable if he went on the roof naked and screamed something dreadfully obscene but otherwise people just be magically compelled to look away as if there was nothing there. At least that's what he believed to this day, until this weird man seemingly defied reality.

Harry Potter looked at him now. The man was apparently not expecting a simple snake to foil whatever plot that he was carrying out. His face was getting bluer by the minute and his eyes held a genuine look of surprise. Quickly as it was noticed, the surprise disappeared and a fiery hatred that burned like the hottest star in the universe took residence in the strange man's brown orbs. If looks could kill, Harry would have died quite painfully on the spot. The man's messy brown hair looked like it hadn't been given the care it deserved and his clothes appeared to have been thrown on in a hurry though they were quite simple. He wore standard wizard dress, consisting of a black robe, dark brown jumper and tan trousers that looked to be really worn and ripped in several places. He was also very dirty which added to Harry's discomfort. Somehow, for some unknown reason, his instincts were telling him..no, screaming that this man couldn't have possibly done this alone.

And so began the interrogation, which was regrettably proven to be fruitless. To put it simply: the man wouldn't...or couldn't, talk. No matter how many times Harry would ask him for his name or what purpose he served, all he got was a look of deep disgust and hatred. Visibly frustrated, Harry had Kreacher fetch the bottle of Veritaserum that he kept in the potions cabinet perhaps out of paranoia. Even after administering the recommended dosage of the truth serum, the man said nothing, much to the astonishment of the others in the room. Harry Potter was now running his hands through his short black hair, as if that would calm his almost unbearable frustration. Seeing no alternative, the auror instructed Marcus to floo the Head of the Ministry's Auror Department. And so Marcus ran to the fireplace in the living room to contact Nymphadora Tonks. Meanwhile, Harry carefully took the stranger's wand, which was thrown to the far side of the room, a good 5-6 meters away, but not before casting every dispelling charm he knew. After all, he never knew what this man was capable of.

Marcus bolted through the badly damaged door. Harry looked at him expectedly.

"She was vexed that I ruined her evening but she understands the situation and she told me that she will be here shortly."

"Very well," and sure enough as Harry was finished saying those words, the two wizards could hear the fire burst to life, indicating a visitor.

"Third floor Tonks!" he yelled, loud enough for her to hear. He was wondering if he had been heard when she ran into the room accompanied by Remus, with whom she was now in married. Behind them came a couple aurors, older ones judging by the hard and wary looks on their faces.

"Wotcher," her usual greeting for him had never went out of use even after so many twists and turns in her life. She flicked her eyes from the coiled up mess on the floor to settle on Harry's unusual choice of company. She wasn't one to poke her nose into other people's lives but Harry had never seemed like the type to mingle with former school enemies. Indeed, it was widely known that Harry Potter had always reserved a special warmth and friendly openness for former members of the Gryffindor house and was often cold and distant towards Slytherins.

The man of mystery was now trying harder to fight against the herculean grip of the constrictor now that the cavalry had arrived, to his dismay. He looked at Harry and his guests. The fiery stars in his eyes turned into supernovas. There was a new emotion reflected in his irises. Fear. The man was now really scared. This wasn't supposed to happen. He was to gather intelligence and then leave unnoticed by the master of the house. He hadn't counted on there being a snake. Nor had he counted on there being a house elf, knowing the man's friendship with the House Elf sympathizer and activist, Hermoine Granger.

"But," Remus was the first to speak, "how did he get inside?"

"That's the problem,"said Harry carefully. "We don't know and it makes me uncomfortable."

"It should." Tonks pointed out, her business face now on. "You'd have to have god like powers to peel through the palings you've set up."

"Where's his wand?" One of the aurors asked while his eyes danced around the room looking for it.

"Here," Harry held out the wand and Tonks took it. She unceremoniously placed it inside her robe pocket. "And another thing..." Harry began and Marcus finished for him.

"He's immune to Veritaserum." Looks of pure disbelief and blatant shock registered on the new arrivals' faces. " It's completely ineffective."

No one knew what to say. All eyes now bore into those of the figure on the floor, reflecting a gaze just as strong. The air was filled with unspoken tension that threatened to suffocate all the room's inhabitants. The snake, who Harry had then and there decided needed a name, had since loosened her grip on her would be meal so he could breathe but not enough to allow him to escape.

After a couple painstaking minutes of goggling at the disheveled stranger, Tonks regained her leader-like composure and had the two senior aurors place the man under arrest. The woman sighed and suddenly looked years beyond her age. Her shoulders slumped and an aura of fatigue radiated off of her in waves. It was sad.

"Looks like another all-nighter," She inwardly shuddered at the thought of the interrogation that was to come. Harry pitied his friend Tonks. After Hogwarts was cleaned up and made somewhat presentable to the new students, the Ministry had begun to hire new staff due to the hostile infiltration and coup by Death Eaters. When everyone that was undesirable had been purged from the institution, Tonks was promoted to the Head of the Auror Department. She knew that it would be a lot more responsibility than her day to day criminal hunting. However, it was an opportunity to make more money to support her and Remus and Teddy, their son. It was tiring, working as an official. Sure the pay was good but she had to do twice the work, often putting in overtime hours to make sure that all the paperwork that was essential to the operation of the Department were approved and accounted for.

The hard faced experts slipped a pair of magic nullifying handcuffs on the house breaker and drug him out of the room and to the fireplace, all the while hoping that the handcuff would live up to their intent.

"We'll get to the bottom of this Harry. I'm positively sure there's a perfectly reasonable explanation of tonight's events." Remus's ever comforting voice knifed through the uncomfortable silence of the room that only he, Tonks, Marcus and Harry were now left in. Tonks was now once again glancing questionably at Marcus who in turn was doing his best to avoid meeting gazes with the hard lined auror.

The two younger men nodded their thanks and couple left; Remus to go home to Teddy and Tonks to break out some more Veritaserum in hopes of forcing some sort of reaction from the prisoner.

Once they were gone and the tell tale fire blast confirmed so, Marcus smiled weakly at Harry. He didn't smile often, he was never given a reason to. Everyone thought that since he looks like trouble, he must better be avoided. There was however a faint smile, not an evil smirk, but a genuine smile present on his face from time to time. Right now, he figured it would be acceptable to provide some comfort and warmth to his house mate. " So..." he began in a friendly tone of voice that he reserved only for his very few close friends and even fewer family members. "Whadya have in mind for the name of our hero?" he asked.

Harry had to think on it. But sure enough, it came to him quickly, as things often did of late.

"Kiba"

"I'm sorry?"

"Kiba. It means 'fang'."

Marcus just shrugged and flashed a toothy grin. Harry had to smile. The informality and friendliness on Marcus's face was too cute. Wait, that's not right?!... _'Now I'm referring to him as cute. What's happening to me.'_ A rather noticeable blush manifested on his cheeks and Harry had to look away before Marcus noticed and decided to tease him about it.

The latter took out his wand and cast a quick _reparo_ on the door so as to prevent Kiba from escaping and eating the owl. After having Kreacher go hunt for a rat or something to treat the constrictor with, Harry all but fell on the living room couch. Marcus, however had other ideas. He stopped in front of Harry who was sprawled on the piece of furniture like it was made of jelly. Slowly, the Gryffindor's eyes traveled up strong legs, to lean stomach and even further up the broad chest and shoulders to rest on green eyes that reminded him a little of his own.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Asked the standing man.

In response, Harry thought on it before it dawned on him.

"The wards," he groaned and gazed disdainfully at the hand that Marcus had offered him. With another tired and childish groan, Harry took the warm hand and Marcus helped him to his feet.

"Come on," he whispered it, "We'll do it together."

Harry groaned yet another time, but somewhat half heartedly. The pair made their way to the front door, which Harry had chosen to be the starting site of his protective charms. After an hour of tiring reparations to the scar that the man caused, Harry and Marcus were so tired that they didn't make it to their respective rooms but instead just flopped down on the couch in a rather questionable position. As soon as their heads had landed on something solid, they passed out from exhaustion. The owl had, as a result of the snake moving upstairs, flown to the living room for refuge. Now she sat on the lovely ornate perch that Kreacher had conjured up for her and purred softly as she too drifted off to sleep.

A big warm merci to _Pain au Chocolat, Anna, Storm's Pride, Crystal Cerberus, Serena/Nightwalkers (who I assume is nightwalkers34. If not then I am sorry.__), Autumn-Annette-19, and last but not least the kind folks who added my humble work of fiction to their alerts and favorites. You are all utterly awesome and I love you. Be on the look out for the next chapter. Don't you want to know what happens in the morning?!_


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